Three Common Herbs Whose Uses in Chickens You'll Never Guess

There are tons of herbs and plants beneficial to human health. Did you ever stop to think that some of these could be healthy and useful in chicken health as well? In this article, we will be looking at three different herbs whose health benefits are amazing and effective.

Parsley
Parsley has MANY uses in chicken health. First of all it is filled with vitamins and is very healthy for growing chicks. It aids in feather and bone growth which is needed also in growing chicks. It is a laying stimulant for hens and helps blood vessel circulation.

You should feed it directly to your flock either fresh or dry. Most people find that their hens like to eat parsley either in the layer feed or just by hand most of all. You can feed them the whole plant while they prefer just the leaves.

Lavender
As you will have noticed from your own experiences, lavender is highly aromatic and soothing. That is why it is one of the most common herbs found in nest boxes. It calms hens so much that it literally puts them to sleep! You want your hen to be relaxed while laying her egg. Besides being very fragrant, lavender also aids in blood circulation. When you have a broody hen who never leaves the nest, be sure to put lavender in with her as this will help get her circulation working.

Lavender is best given fresh in the nest boxes where hens will enjoy it's soothing sent. You can also hang bouquets of it in your coop or run.

Catnip
Finally, catnip is a natural rodent and insect repellant and is also calming.

Use this either in the nests or around the coop. Hanging bouquets of it in the run will, again, help repel annoying insects such as mosquitoes, centipedes, etc.

These three herbs are all beneficial, effective and healthy for chickens. I hope you start using herbs with your own hens!